Beaumont-Wilshire Neighborhood Assn.

Tri Level Fitness Moves to the Next Level

Nov 21, 2000

By Margaret Davis

While working at a downtown athletic club, longtime fitness instructors and personal trainers Steve Schulz and Lori Rede began to yearn for a gym of their own to coach their growing roster of clients. They started small: fitting out a 1,300-foot space at 4815 NE Fremont with free weights and traditional fitness equipment, Schulz and Rede quietly opened for business in May 1999.

Business didn?’t stay quiet for long. ?“We started Tri Level Fitness to provide better services to our clients,?” Schulz says, but when the gym debuted a couple of low-key circuit training classes, the phone kept ringing. Schulz and Rede scrambled to write up a waiting list. The classes, which at first were offered to supplement the personal-training business, ?“were what enabled us to expand,?” says Schulz.

In early November, TLF nearly doubled in size, adopting space formerly occupied by Allstate Insurance and making the waiting list moot. The classes have also received a boost. Aside from the circuit training program, which is now offered five days a week and attracts about 40 participants, TLF offers Spinning, sports conditioning, ?“body basics?” (described as a mat-based body conditioning class), fitness for seniors, Feldenkrais (a cross between Pilates and tai chi) and, of course, personal training.

People who want to stay a step ahead of the holiday pounds, maintain or reach a certain fitness level, or get in shape for winter sports can choose from among 20 classes. The classes are small enough that instructors easily provide individual attention. Schulz and Rede, along with TLF?’s staff trainers, can also design and monitor customized fitness programs.

Schulz is proud of the fact that TLF has brought in people who wouldn?’t otherwise come to a gym. ?“Lots of people are intimidated by the big-gym scene,?” he says. ?“Tri Level Fitness is definitely not a mass-market fitness place.?”

Tri Level Fitness phone number: 503-493-2413.